Criminal Justice News

Thursday, May 08, 2014

Final Defendants Sentenced in Prison Gang Case Based in Central Valley

18 of 38 Defendants Sentenced to More Than 10 Years in
Prison

FRESNO, Calif. — The last defendants in a series of large
cases targeting the Nuestra Familia prison gang were sentenced in U.S. District
Court this week, U.S. Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced. In total, 37
defendants were sentenced to federal prison, 18 of them to 10 years or more in
prison. One defendant was sentenced to probation. They were sentenced for drug
trafficking offenses committed to advance the Nuestra Familia gang.

On Monday, May 5, 2014, Jose Velez, 32, of Delano, was
sentenced to 30 years in prison; Felipe Ramirez, 34, of Visalia, was sentenced
to 28 years in prison; Christopher Medrano, 33, of Hanford, was sentenced to 12
years and seven months in prison; Raymond Avalos, 31, of Hanford, was sentenced
to 20 years in prison; and Calixtro Israel Sanchez, 26, of Hanford, was
sentenced to 12 years and seven months in prison.

On April 28, 2014, Shawn Michael Cameron, 38, of Hanford,
was sentenced to 32 years in prison; Jonathan Mojarro, 24 of Hanford, was
sentenced to 13 years in prison. On April 23, 2014, Richard Salas, 28, of
Hanford, was sentenced to 20 years in prison. The federal charges were
dismissed for four defendants in favor of significant state sentences.

All of the defendants in this case pleaded guilty to the
charges and did not go to trial. They were members or associates of the Nuestra
Familia (NF), a violent Hispanic prison gang based within the California prison
system whose members exert control over street‑level Norteño
gang members engaged in drug trafficking and violent crime throughout the
Central Valley.

According to court documents, during 2009 and 2010, the NF
trafficked in methamphetamine, distributing the drugs and collecting debts in
Kings, Tulare, Kern, Stanislaus, Merced, Madera, and Fresno Counties. The NF
obtained large shipments of methamphetamine from Mexico and distributed it
among NF regiments throughout California and elsewhere. Some of the profits of
the trafficking funded NF members in prison in order to maintain the NF’s power
structure within the prison system.

“Numerous federal, state and local law enforcement agencies
in this region came together to take on one of the most dangerous gangs in
California,” said U.S. Attorney Wagner. “Our work is not done, but many of the
most powerful members of the Nuestra Familia will be spending many years in
federal prison in places far removed from the Central Valley.”

“Organized prison gangs and other criminals who traffic
drugs are responsible for increased violence in our communities,” stated Bureau
of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Special Agent in Charge Joseph M.
Riehl. “This investigation is a prime example of teamwork and superior
collaboration among many law enforcement agencies with a successful
investigative conclusion and prosecution.”

“Today’s significant sentences demonstrate the success
multi-agency Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces have in achieving the
common goal in reducing violence and drug trafficking by taking offenders off
the streets,” said Special Agent in Charge Monica M. Miller of the Sacramento
FBI. “The FBI is committed to ongoing unified collaboration with our partners
to identify, disrupt, and dismantle violent gangs who pose a threat to safety
and quality of life in our communities.”

“This investigation was an example of how successful we can
be when local, state and federal agencies work together to investigate, arrest,
and prosecute this level of criminal enterprise that penetrates our
communities. We are very vigilant to make sure that when they attempt to take a
hold in our communities in the future, we will be just as aggressive in the
investigation and their arrest and prosecution," stated Carlos Mestas,
Chief of Police, Hanford Police Department.

This case was the product of an extensive series of
Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigations by the
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the FBI; Kings County
Narcotic Task Force; the California Department of Justice; and the California
Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Numerous local law enforcement
agencies played key roles in the investigations, including the Police
Departments of Hanford, Lemoore, Visalia, Los Banos, and Corcoran, the Kings
County Sheriff’s Office, the California Highway Patrol, and the U.S. Marshals
Service. Assistant United States Attorneys Kimberly A. Sanchez, Kathleen A.
Servatius, and Melanie L. Alsworth prosecuted the case.

This was one of a series of NF cases prosecuted in the
Eastern District of California. In two other cases completed in US District
Court in Fresno in 2013, seven NF associates were each sentenced to between 10
and nearly 16 years for drug trafficking offenses. In the Sacramento division
of the Eastern District, three more cases have resulted in additional prison
sentences for NF leaders and associates. At least 16 people were sentenced to 10
years or more in the Sacramento federal cases. See attachments for more
information.